Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #18

We have written many times about the subject of food waste but there is nothing more shocking than photos to show the extent of the problem. Rob Greenfield writes in civileats.com about what he calls America’s food waste fiasco. He says that every year, Americans throw away $165 billion dollars worth of food. He has been hosting food waste fiascos in major cities in an effort to raise awareness about the grand scale of the food waste problem. The photos of waste he has rescued from rubbish bins are shocking to say the least.

This morning we followed a very interesting debate about anonymity of restaurant critics on Twitter. This was partly related to the prolific LA Times critic Jonathan Gold who is making himself public one week ahead of the Sundance debut of an upcoming documentary City of Gold, which follows the critic over the course of four years as he eats his way through the city. The question being asked is whether there is such a thing as anonymity and what happens when a critic is actually recognised in a restaurant. You can read about the story here.

The first reports of Noma’s pop-up restaurant in Tokyo are coming in. You can read about this in the Japan Times, see the photos of the meal here or else listen to Jonathan Gold, winner of a Pulitzer price being interviewed about why he traveled to Tokyo to eat at Noma.

Paul Bocuse, the 88-year-old chef who is still cooking in his restaurant in Lyon does not need any introduction. He is France’s most well-known chef and organiser of the Bocuse d’Or, the world’s most renowned cooking competition. Here are some comments from his peers including Raymond Blanc, Daniel Boulud, Alain Ducasse and Michel Roux Jr among others on the influence he has on French cuisine.

This week we came across a very interesting article about food in cans. Are you concerned about best-before dates? You might not be after reading about vintage canned sardines.

There is an interesting link on how to decipher a Bordeaux label. This should make it easier the next time you are confronted with a choice of Bordeaux wines.

Here is a provocative read about some ‘insider’ secrets of wine that no one wants to talk about. Not sure we agree with all but still there is some food for thought.

To continue on the subject of wine, wine fraud is a major problem particularly for top end wines. There is a novel suggestion on how to tackle wine fraud on www.jancisrobinson.com

You can get some fantastic recipes with chocolate from some great chefs (Eneko Atxa, Richard Ekkebus, Mauro Colagreco and Gert de Mangeleer) here.

And last but not least, here is a very interesting guide to Antwerp. We love guides particularly when there are hints on places to eat or drink. This one is no exception with some very interesting recommendations.